Mailbox or other support



April14,1942. Fjp, HURD 2,279,622

MAIL BOX OR OTHER SUPPORT-S April14,1 942. F, P, Hum- 2,279,622

MAIL BOX OR OTHER SUPPORTS Patented Apr. 14, 1942 UNITED STATES PATENT ori-icl?.

MAILBOX R OTHER. SUPPORT Frank P. Hurd, Laurel, Md. Application September 25, 1939, Serial No. 296,513

Claims.

also be swung out of such normal position to a i position whereby the mail may be removed without danger of the person removing the contents of the box being struck by passing vehicles.

A further object of the invention is to provide a rural mail box support so arranged that the mouth of the box may be swung to a position to face a road, and convenient for the delivery of mail from a vehicle, and which may also swing to a position convenient for the removal of mail by a person on the opposite side of a fence to that where the box is so located.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a rural mail box support having an extensible arm on which the box is carried in order that said arm may be adjusted to boxes of different sizes.

Another object of this invention is to provide a mail box support having a telescopic arm on which the box is carried in order that a mail carrier may draw the box close to the side of his car in order to collect and deposit mail, stamps, etc., without danger of dropping the same upon the roadway and damaging or mutilating the same, and then push the box back out of reach of his, or other cars.

A further object of the invention is to provide a mail box support having a swinging arm upon which the box is located and automatic means for locking the arm in a normal position.

With the above and such other objects in view, as may hereinafter more fully appear, I have invented the device shown in the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view of my invention, shown in operative position;

Figure 2 is a similar view, the box being shown in a changed position;

Figure 3 is a top plan view oi Figure 1, the mail box being removed;

Figure 4 is .a similar view of Figure 2, a telescopic member being shown in changed position; r

Figure 5 is adetail view of a clip;

Figure 6 is a bottom plan view of my device, certain parts being broken away;

Figure '7 is a like view showing a cross arm in changed position;

Figure 8 is a section on line 8 8 of Figure 3;v

Figure 9 is a side elevation of the parts shown in Fig. 8; and

Figure 10 is a longitudinal sectional View of the showing in Fig. 7.

Like reference characters indicate like parts, throughout the following specification and in the several views in the drawings in which I indicates a common type of metal fence, or other post, to which my mail box holder 2 is attached by means of Y-shaped clips 3 andA 3, each having three terminal arms 4, 5, and E, and 4', 5 and 6'. The arms 4 and 5 pass around the post I, and extend through openings in the tie plates I and 8, and are clamped to the post by nuts 9 and I Il. The arms 6 and 6' are provided with eyes 6a and 6b respectively which, when the clips are xed in position upon the post I, vertically aline with one another in order to receive and hold the pivot rod IG, which passes through a bore II in the inner terminal I2 of a horizontally disposed bracket arm I3 fixed to the upper end I4 of a vertically disposed bar I5, having an outwardly turned right angular terminal I6, proy vided with a bore I'I alining with bore II, and through which said pivot rod Ill also passes and is held in position by a nut I8, on the threaded terminal I9 of the pivot rod. The said arms 6 and 6 are of sufcient length to permit the bracket member I3 to swing in an arc of somewhat more than a quarter circle, in order that in its position shown in Figure 4, the door end 20 of the mail box 2|, will have swung across the fence line 22, upon which the post I is positioned, and to a convenient position for the removal of the contents of said box without the person collecting the contents of the box having to cross the said fence line, and thus avoiding the possibility of being struck by vehicles passing on the road adjacent to which the mail boxA is mounted. The bracket arm I3 is normally held at right angles to, or facing the road just referred to by means of a link hook 23 the end 23' of which is pivotally mounted upon one of the terminals 24 or 25 of an arm v26 attached to the under side of arm I 3, intermediate its ends I2 and 2l. The hook 28 of member 23 is adapted to engage the eye 29 or eye 30, on the arms 4 and 5 respectively of clip 3 whereby the box 2I may be held in its normal extended position ready to receive mail from the route man. In order that the mail box may be swung either to the right or the left of post I (depending upon local conditions), I have provided the arm 2B with an elongated slot 3l extending to adjacent the ends 24 and 25 of said arm and a bolt 32 iixed to arm I3 and depending therefrom is passed through said slot 3I to receive the clamp member 33 and nut 34 whereby the arm 26 is fixed in a -desired position for a right or left swing, and also for adjustment of link hook 23 relative to the said eyes 29 and 30, thus assuring a perfect adjustment of said hook and eyes regardless of the contour or diameter of post I. The clamp member 33 may be provided with a V-rib 35 to seat in V-cups 38 in the underside of arm 26 to assure a rmer and more rigid connection. The members I3 and I5 are further connected by a brace 31. The arm I3 is T-shaped in cross section in order to seat in the similarly formed channel 38 provided in the under side of a telescopic extension arm 39. The member 39 is provided with spaced apart cross arms or side extensions 40 and 4I, iiush with its upper surface 42, to which the mail box 2| is attached by screw bolts. The under wall 43 of member 39, has an elongated groove 44 into which projects a screw pin 45, projecting up from the arm I3, which pin acts as a stop to the outward movement of said arm 39.

This telescopic arrangement not only permits one standard size support to receive mail boxes of different sizes, but also permits the mail carrier to reach out of his car and draw the box right up to himself, avoiding the loss of money and time, in case of stamp money being dropped in reaching way out of his car, as is necessary with the usual type of mail box supports. It also protects mail matter and postage from the elements, and in shoving the box back, after fmishing with it, the box is protected from being knocked off by vehicles which very often ride too far to the side of the road, as the box Will slide back out of danger from ordinary traiiic.

One of the principal objects of this invention is that when necessary the box may be swung to one side entirely out of the way of road machines, such as graders, ditching machines, etc., and avoid being broken off or injured by the same, and at the sam-e time, save road gangs much time and annoyance in trying to protect the mail box in rare cases where they are considerate to this extent. Furthermore, there is also involved in the invention the consideration of time saved in removing mail where the box is outside of a fence. And, above all, is its safety feature in protecting its users from traiiic hazards.

Having now described my invention, that which I claim to be new, and desire to procure by Letters Patent is:

l. In a devi-ce of the nature described a telescopic box supporting arm, said arm being pivotally mounted, and means for holding the arm against pivotal movement, said means being adjustable, to permit the swinging of said arm either to the right or to the left, and including a cross arm on said first arm.

2. In a device of the nature described a telescopic box supporting arm, said arm being pivotally mounted, and means for holding the arm against pivotal movement, said means being adjustable, to permit the swinging' of said arm either to the right or to the left, and including a cross arm, slidably mounted on said first arm.

3. In a device as described a pair of spaced apart Y-bolts each having an eye aligning with the other, a pivot member carried in said eyes and a box supporting arm carried by said member, and means for xedly attaching said bolts to a post, an additional eye on opposite arms of one of said Y-bolts and means having connection with said last eyes and said rst arm, whereby said box supporting arm may be held in locked position.

4. In a device as described a pair of spaced apart Y-bolts each having an eye aligning with the other, a pivot member carried in said eyes and a box supporting arm carried by said member, means for fixedly attaching said bolts to a post, an additional eye on opposite arms of one of said Y-bolts and means, attachable to said last eyes, whereby said box supporting arm may be held in locked position, said last means consisting of a brace rod and a cross arm of the box supporting arm to which the brace rod is also attachable.

FRANK P. HURD. 

